DOHA: CIA Director Bill Burns is expected in Doha to meet with Qatar’s Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani for “emergency” discussions on mediation in the Israel-Hamas war, a source with knowledge of the talks told AFP on Sunday.
The source, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue, said that Burns’ visit is prompted by the need to address the current impasse in negotiations and explore avenues to revive the stalled talks.
“CIA Director Burns is on his way to Doha for an emergency meeting with Qatar’s prime minister to explore avenues to see if the talks can be brought back on track,” the source stated, noting the lack of progress in the recent talks held in Cairo.
Qatar, alongside the United States and Egypt, has been actively engaged in behind-the-scenes diplomacy aimed at securing a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. However, the latest round of talks concluded in Cairo without a breakthrough, as Israel and Hamas exchanged accusations over the failure to reach an agreement.
Meanwhile, a Hamas delegation at Gaza truce negotiations in Cairo has left for Doha to hold consultations and will return for more talks on Tuesday, Egyptian state-linked media reported on Sunday.
“The Hamas delegation has left Cairo this evening (Sunday) for Doha in order to conduct consultations, and will return Tuesday to conclude the negotiations” towards a truce in the war with Israel, reported Al-Qahera News, a site linked to Egyptian intelligence services, citing an unidentified “informed source”.
The negotiators for the Palestinian resistance group arrived in Cairo on Saturday. A Hamas official on Sunday said that the Palestinian group’s negotiators in Cairo were leaving for Doha after talks ended in the Egyptian capital.
“The meeting with the Egyptian intelligence minister has ended and the Hamas delegation is leaving for Doha for further consultations,” said the official, who is close to the talks process, requesting anonymity as he was not authorized to publicly discuss the talks.
Negotiations resumed on Sunday with the Hamas delegation engaging with Qatari and Egyptian mediators. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the shutdown of operations of the news channel Al Jazeera in Israel.
The mediators have proposed a 40-day pause in the fighting and an exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners, according to details released by Britain.
After “no developments” in the first round, a senior Hamas official insisted the group would “not agree under any circumstances” to a truce that did not explicitly include a complete end to the war, including Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza.
Hamas chief Haniyeh said Netanyahu wanted to “invent constant justifications for the continuation of aggression, expanding the circle of conflict, and sabotaging efforts made through various mediators and parties”.
He said Hamas “remains eager to reach a comprehensive and interconnected agreement in stages, ending the aggression, ensuring withdrawal, and achieving a serious prisoner exchange deal”.
Netanyahu reiterated his government’s rejection of Hamas’s demand to end the ongoing conflict, asserting that acceptance of such demands would equate to defeat. In response, the political chief of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, accused Netanyahu of undermining the talks.
Since October 7, Israel’s relentless bombardment campaign has killed at least 34,683 Palestinians in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry. The latest toll included at least 29 deaths over the previous day, the ministry said.
